{"id":17323,"date":"2025-09-19T12:58:05","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T02:28:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/?p=17323"},"modified":"2025-09-19T12:58:07","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T02:28:07","slug":"stampin-up-festive-friends-bundle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/stampin-up-festive-friends-bundle\/","title":{"rendered":"Festive Friends Christmas Card: Ink-Blended Background + Cling-Wrap Texture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you love bold backgrounds and character stamps that do the heavy lifting, today\u2019s project with the <strong>Stampin\u2019 Up! Festive Friends Bundle<\/strong> is for you. In my Thursday Live I challenged myself to try a background technique I\u2019d never tried before \u2014 and it turned out brilliantly. Below you\u2019ll find the step-by-step process, colouring tips with Stampin\u2019 Blends, and simple tweaks to help you recreate (or remix) the look with Santa, the elf, or the Snowman.<\/p>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image17323_9007f0-ad .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image17323_9007f0-ad size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends.jpg\" alt=\"Stampin Up Festive Friends Bundle\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-17326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-560x560.jpg 560w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-400x400.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Festive-Friends-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Look<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re pairing a <strong>Real Red ink-blended ombr\u00e9 panel<\/strong> with a soft, organic <strong>cling-wrap water-lift texture<\/strong>. It creates that beautiful mottled effect.  For contrast, the <strong>elf coloured in cool blue-greens (Summer Splash with Pretty Peacock shadows)<\/strong> pops perfectly over the warm red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"width: 100%; display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center;\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jNCEsZjq8iE?si=32USG-mjttckmW7N\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Supplies at a Glance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Stampin Up Festive Friends Bundle<\/strong> <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Classic ink pad: <strong>Real Red<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Stampin\u2019 Blends<\/strong>: Summer Splash (Light\/Dark), Pretty Peacock (Light for shading), Ivory (skin), Flirty Flamingo (cheeks), Grey Granite (light trim), 100\/Basic Black (hair)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Memento Tuxedo Black<\/strong> (for alcohol-marker friendly stamping)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Small dish of water, paper towel, and <strong>cling wrap<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Wink of Stella<\/strong> (optional) or Puff Paint (for a different look) for fluffy trim<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Adhesives and basic cutting tools<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Technique 1: Ombr\u00e9 Ink Blending that Behaves<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Cut a white panel to your usual card-front size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Load a blending brush with <strong>Real Red<\/strong> and work <strong>heaviest at the top<\/strong>, fading to light at the bottom.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you struggle with light blends, hold the brush nearer the end to reduce pressure and avoid harsh patches.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tip:<\/strong> Don\u2019t chase perfection\u2014this background gets <em>even better<\/em> after the texture step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Technique 2: Cling-Wrap Water-Lift Texture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Scrunch up a piece of <strong>cling wrap<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Lightly dampen a folded paper towel; press the cling wrap into it so it\u2019s <strong>moist, not dripping<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Pounce and press the damp cling wrap over the inked panel. The water reacts with dye ink to <strong>lift<\/strong> and <strong>mottle<\/strong> the colour, creating a soft, frosty texture.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dry with a heat tool or air-dry.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Bonus:<\/strong> If you move quickly, you can even \u201cstamp\u201d the inky cling wrap onto a spare white panel for a second, softer background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Focal Image: Colouring the Elf (or Swap for Santa\/Snowman)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Stamp the <strong>Elf<\/strong> in <strong>Memento<\/strong> on Basic White.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Colour the Clothing in <strong>Pretty Peacock (Light), Summer Splash (Dark and Light)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Skin: <strong>Ivory<\/strong> with a whisper of <strong>Flirty Flamingo (Light)<\/strong> on cheeks, then soften again with Ivory.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Trim: <strong>Light Gray Granite<\/strong>, softened on the edge with the <strong>Colour Lifter<\/strong> for that fluffy suggestion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hair: <strong>100\/Basic Black<\/strong> for instant contrast.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Design Choice:<\/strong> On a red background, the blue-green elf sings. Prefer Santa? Keep his suit classic red but separate him from the background with a pale grey grounding shadow or a die-cut circle\/label. The <strong>snowman<\/strong> is gorgeous over a blue ombr\u00e9; try the same technique in <strong>Balmy Blue<\/strong> or <strong>Azure Afternoon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sentiment Styling<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <strong>\u201cSanta\u2019s Coming to Town\u201d<\/strong> sentiment looks fresh when you <strong>stamp, trim, and stagger<\/strong> the words. Don\u2019t worry about perfect lines\u2014angled snippets add playful energy and guide the eye down the card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fast Coordinating \u201cPaper\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Need a coordinating strip? Hand-draw quick <strong>marker stripes<\/strong> on a scrap of white with <strong>Summer Splash Dark<\/strong>. Imperfect spacing looks intentionally arty and ties your palette together. Adhere as a side border and save off-cuts for the card interior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Finishing Touches<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Pop your elf up on dimensionals.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Add <strong>Wink of Stella<\/strong> to hat trim and pom-pom, or dot on <strong>Puff Paint<\/strong> for cosy texture.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mount to a <strong>Real Red<\/strong> base for a polished finish.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why You\u2019ll Love the Stampin Up Festive Friends Bundle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Large, confident images<\/strong>\u2014ideal for quick colouring or step-up shading.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Versatile dies<\/strong> for clean cuts plus extra accents (trees, snowflakes, tags).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Works across styles:<\/strong> cute, modern, or mixed-media depending on colours and background.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image17323_8dd40b-62 .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image17323_8dd40b-62 size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"890\" height=\"897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-17327\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000.png 890w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-298x300.png 298w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-768x774.png 768w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-560x564.png 560w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-600x605.png 600w, https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-19-115000-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 890px) 100vw, 890px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you enjoyed this technique, <strong>join my email list<\/strong> for the printable tutorial with measurements plus access to my <strong>Craft Library<\/strong> of 100+ card tutorials. Ready to craft along? <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/wwww.alisatilsner.stampinup.net\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Order the Festive Friends Stamp Set or Bundle<\/a><\/strong> from my Stampin\u2019 Up! shop in Australia<\/p>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image17323_e7ae01-a5 .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image17323_e7ae01-a5 size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/alisa-tilsner-round-logo-transparent-e1623752213720.png\" alt=\"Alisa\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-11857\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Shop my <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stampinup.net\/esuite\/home\/alisatilsner\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ONLINE STORE<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/join-stampin-up-australia\/\">Join The Artful Stampers<\/a><a aria-label=\"undefined (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/join-stampin-up-australia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> Team<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/join-stampin-up-australia\/\"> <\/a>&#8211; Happy Shoppers, <g class=\"gr_ gr_11 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace\" id=\"11\" data-gr-id=\"11\">Hobbiest<\/g>, Part Time and Full Time welcome!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/tutorial-and-card-making-membership\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"14602\">Creative Card Makers Club<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Watch me on <a aria-label=\"undefined (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/alisatilsner\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">YouTube<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Socialise with me on <a aria-label=\"undefined (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AlisaTilsnerIndependentStampinUpDemonstrator\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">FaceBook<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"mailto:alisacraig@westnet.com.au\">Email Me<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you love bold backgrounds and character stamps that do the heavy lifting, today\u2019s project with the Stampin\u2019 Up! Festive Friends Bundle is for you. In my Thursday Live I challenged myself to try a background technique I\u2019d never tried before \u2014 and it turned out brilliantly. Below you\u2019ll find the step-by-step process, colouring tips&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":170,"featured_media":17326,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_wp_convertkit_post_meta":{"form":"-1","landing_page":"0","tag":"0","restrict_content":"0"},"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,456,461,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stampin-up-card-ideas","category-stampin-up-christmas-card-ideas","category-stampin-up-ink-blending-techniques","category-stampin-up-video-tutorials"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/170"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17323"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17323\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17328,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17323\/revisions\/17328"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alisatilsner.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}